Tag: Yetur Gross-Matos

49ers 1st NFC Defensive Player of the Week is major surprise

Yetur Gross-Matos was awarded for his monster game vs. the Bears.

The San Francisco 49ers for the first time this season have the NFC Defensive Player of the Week, and it came via an unlikely source.

On a defense littered with stars like Nick Bosa, Fred Warner, Javon Hargrave, Deommodore Lenoir, Charvarius Ward and Talanoa Hufanga, it was offseason addition Yetur Gross-Matos who earned the defense’s first NFC Defensive Player of the Week award of the 2024 campaign.

Gross-Matos earned the nod after notching three sacks in San Francisco’s 38-13 blowout win over the Chicago Bears.

It was a glimpse into what the 49ers were hoping to get when they signed Gross-Matos to a two-year, $18 million contract in the offseason. A knee injury in the preseason derailed the first part of his year as he tried to play through the ailment before eventually landing on IR.

Prior to his IR stint, Gross-Matos had one tackle and one quarterback hit through three games. Since returning, he has 4.0 sacks and 14 tackles, five tackles for loss and five quarterback hits in four games.

The 49ers pass rush has really struggled this season, particularly with DE Nick Bosa absent because of hip and oblique injuries. If Gross-Matos continues ascending the way he has over the last four games he could become an important player for the 49ers beyond the 2024 campaign.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

49ers roster moves good news for defensive line ahead of Week 11

49ers roster moves ahead of Week 11:

The San Francisco 49ers are getting a key piece of their defensive line back ahead of their Week 11 showdown with the Seattle Seahawks.

Defensive lineman Yetur Gross-Matos has been activated off IR according to an announcement from the team. Punter Mitch Wishnowsky and cornerback Darrell Luter Jr. were both placed on IR, and punter Pat O’Donnell was promoted from the practice squad.

Wishnowsky is dealing with a back injury that initially cropped up in training camp and forced him to miss the preseason. He’ll now be out at least four weeks before he’s eligible to return. The team signed O’Donnell to the practice squad early in the week, signaling bad news for Wishnowsky’s status.

The Gross-Matos return could be significant for a 49ers defensive end rotation that has struggled to produce this season. Gross-Matos tried playing through a knee injury he suffered in training camp, but eventually it landed him on IR. That knee issue may have slowed him down some because in three games he posted only one tackle, one quarterback hit and five pressures according to Pro Football Focus.

Ideally Gross-Matos will fit as a defensive end who can also rush the passer from the interior. His return may help make up for the lack of acquisitions on the defensive line at the trade deadline. Sunday will mark his first action since the 49ers’ Week 4 win over the New England Patriots.

San Francisco also brought up cornerback Nick McCloud from the practice squad on a standard elevation. McCloud is a standout special teams player who will replace Luter who is now out for at least four weeks after suffering a pelvis injury in the lead up to Week 11.

Veteran safety Tashaun Gipson was also elevated from the practice squad to provide depth at a position where the 49ers have Ji’Ayir Brown, Malik Mustapha and George Odum on the roster.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

49ers have one glaring need to address at NFL trade deadline

The trade deadline is just a couple weeks away and there’s a clear need the 49ers need to address.

The NFL trade deadline is rapidly approaching and the San Francisco 49ers have a handful of positions they could address via the trade market. However, there’s one clear need they should aim to cross off first.

Before the trade deadline passes on November 5 at 1:00pm Pacific Time, the 49ers should add at least one additional edge rusher. It wouldn’t be a surprise if they added multiple the way they did last year when they acquired Randy Gregory from the Broncos and Chase Young from the Commanders.

There are arguments to be made that linebacker is a position of need. Safety could become an issue, and offensive line help is something every team needs.

An injury could change the entire calculus at the deadline for the 49ers, but going into Week 7 it’s clear that defensive end help is at the top of their list of needs.

This season the 49ers have registered only 13.0 sacks. Only 7.0 of those have come from defensive ends, including 3.0 from Nick Bosa, 2.0 from Leonard Floyd and 2.0 from Sam Okuayinonu. But even those sack totals are a little misleading.

Bosa has racked up 35 pressures and has a 20.2 percent pass rush win rate per Pro Football Focus. That’s the seventh-highest rate in the NFL among players with at least 100 pass rush snaps.

Floyd has accounted for 20 pressures, but his win rate is just 10.1 percent. Okuayinonu has nine pressures and a 14.8 percent pass rush win rate.

Yetur Gross-Matos wasn’t having a ton of success due in part to a knee injury that wound up landing him on IR. He had just five pressures and a paltry 10.4 percent win rate.

Robert Beal has yet to register a pressure in 22 pass rush reps.

It’s not a deep group for a club that built a defense where the pass rush is supposed to be the tip of the spear. They’ve had to make some adjustments with a higher blitz rate, and some strong play in the secondary has made up at times for a lack of pass rush. That unit cannot stay as presently assembled though or eventually the wheels are going to fall off.

Perhaps the 49ers make multiple additions. Perhaps they get hyper aggressive and go after a big name that comes available as teams fall further out of the playoff hunt. Either way, they need to make a trade to bolster their DE depth by the trade deadline or they may see their season come to an end sooner than they’re expecting.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

49ers activate one DL off IR, place another DL on IR

49ers roster moves ahead of Week 5:

The San Francisco 49ers announced a handful of roster moves Saturday before their Week 5 showdown against the Arizona Cardinals.

Defensive tackle Kalia Davis was activated off IR after getting three full practices in during the week. Davis hurt his knee in the preseason and was expected to miss about half the season. Instead he only missed about a quarter of the year, and his return provides some depth on a banged up defensive line for San Francisco. Davis has one sack in three games since being selected in the sixth round of the 2022 draft.

Defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos was placed on IR as part of Saturday’s moves. He missed all of the Week 5 practices with a knee injury. It’s unclear if or when he’ll return in 2024. Gross-Matos had one tackle and no sacks in three games.

The 49ers also elevated wide receiver Trent Taylor and defensive tackle T. Y. McGill from the practice squad. Taylor may wind up returning punts if WR Jacob Cowing can’t go. Cowing is questionable with a shoulder injury he suffered in Week 4.

McGill gives the 49ers depth on the D-line. He’s entering his ninth NFL season. He flashed a few times in 2022 when he played in nine games for San Francisco. He played two games for the 49ers last season after spending time on the practice squad.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

49ers finally get good injury news with Week 2 approaching

Hey the 49ers practice participation report had some good news on it!

The San Francisco 49ers finally had good news on their practice participation report.

Every player on the 53-man roster participated in Thursday’s practice leading up to Week 2. That’s a departure from the first handful of practices of the year where defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos and linebacker Dee Winters were both non-participants.

Here’s what Thursday’s participation report looked like:

Limited participation

DE Yetur Gross-Matos (knee)
LB Dee Winters (ankle)
LG Aaron Banks (finger, calf)
S Talanoa Hufanga (knee)
WR Jauan Jennings (ankle)
RB Christian McCaffrey (calf, Achilles)

Gross-Matos and Winters both getting limited sessions in is a good sign that they’re trending the right way, but it doesn’t mean they’re guaranteed to play Sunday. Limited practice is better than no practice, though.

Banks, Hufanga, Jennings and McCaffrey were all limited in Wednesday’s session as well. Banks and Jennings both played in the season opener and suffered injuries during the game. Jennings returned to the contest, but Banks did not. Spencer Burford played well in his stead.

Hufanga and McCaffrey are both significant question marks for Week 2 after missing the season opener. If either gets a full practice in Friday it would bode well for their chances to suit up in Minnesota. If neither gets a full practice, we may need to wait another week to see the starting running back and strong safety on the field.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

 

Key injury on defense could spell doom for 49ers vs. Jets

The 49ers may have a pretty big depth problem with an injury at their most important defensive position.

The San Francisco 49ers may have a pretty major injury-related issue to solve when they open their regular season slate against the New York Jets on Monday night.

With the contract issues with Brandon Aiyuk and Trent Williams getting resolved, and Christian McCaffrey looking on track to play after suffering a calf injury, a knee sprain for defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos has flown under the radar.

Gross-Matos suffered a knee sprain in the preseason finale that head coach Kyle Shanahan called a ‘week-to-week’ injury. Shanahan also expressed some hope that Gross-Matos would be able to practice by Week 1.

That hasn’t been the case. The 49ers have listed the DE as a non-participant in practice for each of their first two sessions of the regular season. Non-participations on consecutive days to start a week typically don’t bode well for the injured player’s chances of suiting up.

If Gross-Matos can’t play, the 49ers might be in trouble at the most important position on their defense. Nick Bosa, Leonard Floyd and Robert Beal Jr. are the only other DEs on the active roster.

Bosa and Floyd have been productive pros for a long time. They figure to start every game for the 49ers. Things get dicey after that.

Beal is still largely unproven though after playing in just four games last season as a rookie sixth-round pick out of the University of Georgia.

As far as internal depth the 49ers have Alex Barrett, Sam Okuayinonu and Jonathan Garvin. That trio has played in a combined 53 games with Garvin accounting for 38 of them. He has 1.5 sacks in those 38 contests. Okuayinonu has 0.5 sacks in six games. Barrett, a practice squad mainstay for the 49ers since 2020, has never gotten the quarterback on the ground in his nine career games.

It’s likely one of that trio would be elevated to the active roster for Monday’s game if Gross-Matos can’t suit up. That leaves the 49ers extremely shallow at DE. They’ll need big games from their established stars on the defensive line, and they’ll need the secondary to step up if a lack of pass rush becomes a problem for San Francisco.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

49ers get good injury news on 2 key defensive ends

The 49ers got some decent injury news on their 2 DEs.

The San Francisco 49ers avoided a nightmare scenario in their preseason finale.

In a game where the ultimate goal was staying healthy, the 49ers lost two of their top three defensive ends in the first quarter to injury. Yetur Gross-Matos went down first, then Leonard Floyd went down not long afterward.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan said after the game both players suffered knee sprains. An additional update Sunday from Shanahan said Floyd is day-to-day, and Gross-Matos is week-to-week with their knee injuries.

It sounds like Floyd should be ready to suit up on Sept. 9 for the season opener. However, Gross-Matos’ status is less certain. Shanahan said the team doesn’t anticipate needing to put him on IR, and that there’s some hope he’ll be able to practice in the week leading up to the opener.

Ultimately the 49ers dodged a catastrophe with neither player suffering significant injuries. Even a scenario where one of the pair missed multiple weeks would have put San Francisco in a precarious spot. Their depth at the defensive end spot isn’t good, and they’re relying heavily on Floyd and Gross-Matos this season. Removing one of them from the rotation forces the 49ers to scrape the bottom of an already shallow barrel at the pass rushing spot.

The 49ers open their regular season on Monday Night Football against the New York Jets to close out Week 1.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

 

2 injuries in preseason finale could be major problem for 49ers

Uh oh…

The San Francisco 49ers’ main goal of the preseason is to get through it without any major injuries.

That’s a key reason why the club didn’t feature its starters until the preseason finale Friday night against the Las Vegas Raiders. Unfortunately for San Francisco, two first-quarter injuries could make their biggest fear a reality.

When the second quarter started, the team announced defensive ends Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos are questionable to return with knee injuries.

It’s unclear when Gross-Matos got hurt. Floyd went down late in the first quarter when defensive tackle Maliek Collins fell onto his leg as both players went to the ground. The latter was back on the sideline after briefly going to the locker room.

Injuries to any player would have been bad. There’s an extra layer of dread that comes with injuries on the defensive line.

That unit doesn’t have the same depth they’ve had in the past, particularly at defensive end. Nick Bosa sat out Friday’s game. Floyd figured to be the starter opposite Bosa, and Gross-Matos was in line to play a significant role as a versatile DL who played on the end and at tackle.

Behind them the group is exceedingly thin with second-year DE Robert Beal Jr. the main contender for snaps in the rotation. After Beal it’s Alex Barrett, Sam Okuayinonu and Jonathan Garvin. That trio isn’t likely to provide nearly enough support to make up for any absence for Floyd and Gross-Matos.

The good news for the 49ers is they have a shade over two weeks until the regular-season opener. Both players have been available throughout camp so they should be able to hit the ground running if they can suit up for Week 1.

Head coach Kyle Shanahan after the game told reporters both players suffered knee sprains. Floyd and Gross-Matos are scheduled for MRIs Saturday.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Big problem brewing at one of 49ers most important position groups

The 49ers have a problem at a key position.

The San Francisco 49ers might have a problem in one of their key position groups.

During the John Lynch-Kyle Shanahan tenure, the 49ers have built their defense from front to back. That means they’ve prioritized a stout defensive front that gets after the quarterback. Everything else with their defense falls into place after that.

While the club has improved in the secondary and frequently rolls out the best linebacker duo in the NFL, their defensive line is in a tough spot heading into the second week of the preseason.

Depth has been one of the calling cards for their good defensive lines. They’re not only a top-heavy group with players like Nick Bosa and Javon Hargrave, but they’ve consistently had good depth behind their starting units.

Last season their depth struggled. They made two in-season trades for defensive ends and never found enough quality to go behind Hargrave and his fellow defensive tackle Arik Armstead. As a result, the 49ers pass rush wasn’t as impactful as we’re used to seeing and their run defense faltered down the stretch.

This offseason they shuffled things up.

Armstead was released. In his place the 49ers added free agent DT Jordan Elliott, and traded for former Houston Texans DT Maliek Collins.

At defensive end Randy Gregory and Chase Young both left in free agency, clearing the way for free agent additions Leonard Floyd and Yetur Gross-Matos.

A starting group of Floyd, Bosa, Hargrave and Collins is solid. Gross-Matos is a versatile reserve, and Elliott is putting together a nice camp. Former undrafted free agent Kevin Givens also figures to be in the rotation.

Outside of that, things are dicey for the 49ers. They have enough bodies at defensive tackle that they should be able to find a good rotation, even after a knee injury that will sideline DT Kalia Davis for half the season. Defensive end is a different story.

Drake Jackson was supposed to be a key role player, but his season is already over due to his ongoing recovery from offseason surgery. Second-year DE Robert Beal Jr. should have plenty of opportunities after playing in just four games as a rookie. He played 51 total snaps in the 49ers’ preseason opener against the Tennessee Titans and had a couple of run stops, but he didn’t post a pressure in 24 pass rushing snaps according to Pro Football Focus.

The only DE that did post a pressure for the 49ers against the Titans was veteran Alex Barrett who has been a practice squad staple the last four years. Barrett doesn’t figure to be in the team’s plans beyond internal depth.

Recently-signed DE Jonathan Garvin had an okay game after not getting much time to practice. Garvin was a seventh-round pick of the Green Bay Packers in 2020. He had 1.5 sacks in 38 games with the Packers before his release in 2023. His track record doesn’t indicate he’ll be a major factor for the 49ers this year.

This is a vital group for the 49ers and they don’t have a ton of depth to withstand either a subpar showing or an injury. Their margin for error is razor thin at a position they’ve prioritized consistently during the Lynch-Shanahan era. Don’t be surprised if there’s a trade in the works either before the season or during the season to improve that unit.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Panthers OLB D.J. Wonnum forecasted as team’s biggest bust for 2024 season

Is Panthers OLB D.J. Wonnum in line for a disappointing 2024 campaign?

Some may see Carolina Panthers outside linebacker D.J. Wonnum as a potential breakout candidate for the 2024 season. But others may view him as quite the opposite.

The latter party includes Bleacher Report’s David Kenyon, who recently predicted each NFL team’s biggest bust for the upcoming campaign. He tabs Wonnum for Carolina:

Twice in four seasons with Minnesota, DJ Wonnum notched eight sacks. That upside looks good, but it also happened opposite Danielle Hunter. Wonnum doesn’t have that luxury in Carolina, which generated the NFL’s fewest pressures in 2023 and traded Brian Burns this offseason.

In addition to Burns, the Panthers also said their goodbyes to fellow outside linebackers Frankie Luvu and Yetur Gross-Matos. The departed trio ended up as the defense’s three-leading sack getters of 2023.

Wonnum, who signed a two-year, $12.5 million deal this spring, will also have to overcome a setback of his own. The 26-year-old sustained a torn quadricep in the Minnesota Vikings’ Week 16 matchup against the Detroit Lions back in December.

Head coach Dave Canales told reporters in early June that Wonnum was still working through his road to recovery.

“Just working through some different things,” Canales said. “He had some complications . . . he had a quadricep tendon rupture there. And so he had a repair and there was some different things they had to clean out. So it’s kinda just like this back-and-forth trying to get him as healthy as we can so we can get him on the field and get him back to full speed. So he’s still kinda working through some of those things.”

Wonnum did not participate in the team’s spring workouts.

[lawrence-related id=699606,699600,693674]